Getting to Lome

Flying over Africa from Brussels was quite an experience. I kept thinking “This is my home for the next two years.” I got even more excited when I knew we were flying over Togo. It made me think that this was absolutely the right choice.

It’s been an extremely long journey; from flight to uncomfortable flight and then the confusion of the Togo airport. The airport is small and I was a bit confused as to what I was supposed to do to get through customs. The Peace Corps drove us to one of the two hotels we are staying in for a nice meal. They had the Togo version of pizza, meatballs, and French fries. By the time we finished eating we all were exhausted. I slept well under my mosquito net.

The hotel I’m staying in is quite nice. I am extremely fortunate that I have wireless in the hotel. I plan on using it while I can because at the training site there will only be internet cafes.  

 So, what about the capitol itself? It’s difficult to describe Lome unless you’ve seen a third world country. The capital is fairly small with dirt roads. There are people selling goods on the side of every road and people on scoters pay little mind to pedestrians. So far I love Togo. There are so many things to see and everything is so different. It is a bit overwhelming to try and describe. Also, I haven’t been able to see much of Lome.

Mostly what we’ve done is go back a forth from our hotels to the Peace Corps office, learn about health and safety, met with the director, had our French placement test, and got our bikes.

So far I love my time in Togo. I’ll post more soon.